24th of April
by Lucitae
Summary: Without knowing, April 24th has passed ten times. In the world-that-will-not-be what happens? Hibari's recollection.


**Thanks to:** Cami for giving me this prompt a day before Yamamoto's birthday. Without her I would have never written this. Lulu for cheering me on and forever aspiring me to follow her footsteps, her works are going to be my model from now on. Mimi for being my cheerleader and the person who actually was the one to give birth to this Hibari-muse. Where would I be without her? So a special thank you to Lulu and Mimi for having wonderful interpretations of Yamamoto which I fail to encapture here.

**Dedicated to:** Yamamoto Takeshi. Happy Birthday and may you never loose that smile of yours.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own KHR.

* * *

"It's Yamamoto-san's birthday!" or so were the screams that filled the supposedly silent afternoon. And just exactly what was the ruckus? Who dared disturb his peaceful afternoon? Eyes snapping open, revealing the cold grey beneath as he glared, allowing his eyes to adjust to the rays of light projected onto his beloved school's roof. Pushing himself up with a grunt, he looked down below, just to see what the commotion was about and whether he should or should not go down there and administer discipline that the screeching herbivores were definitely lacking.

There was a loud crack that filled the hazy afternoon, one that could only be produced by the baseball bat making contact with the leather. Judging from the sounds, it probably went quite far. And it did. One herbivore dressed in white and some blue cap, ran all around in a little diamond. Sports never made sense to him anyways. But he shifted slightly before picking up some noise and more incoherent squealing.

It was in between the chatter and the lively atmosphere (as well as the deafening of his ears) that he picked up a name: _Yamamoto Takeshi_. Where had he heard this before? The name triggered a memory… some herbivore that tried to die in his school grounds.

As if an herbivore's date of birth needed his reckoning. With that he rose and left the brightness of the roof behind him with a metallic creak of the door.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Sunlight filtering through his window, rays being thrown off by the light fabric of the curtain, keeping them from disturbing the prefect from his little nap. The past few days had been tiring. Even if he was called 'the strongest guardian' he was still human and still enjoyed napping.

Yet his yellow canary decided to plop onto his head, immediately waking the already stirring guardian. A steel eye slowly revealed it self as it watched the canary's actions, slowly his lips did as well forming a weird looking smirk… yet it couldn't be called a smile either.

Quickly his thoughts skimmed back to how he had gotten this animal in the first place. Had it already been almost a year? Fighting with that damned pineapple and acquiring a little yellow follower, fighting a robot and gaining this random ring with the imprint of a cloud. His finger skimmed over the face of the ring, once again outlining the edges of the cloud, reminding himself of the things he never bargained for. With a sigh, he sat up properly before long fingers shuffled through the organized stacks of papers that were awaiting the 'prefect's decision. As he dug for a certain document, he carelessly knocked over the calendar that Kukasabe must have left on his table to keep track of days. Frowning, he stood up to pick it up, in the process of deciding whether or not to punish that teen for unnecessary actions when his eye caught the date of today. April 24th was it? Somewhere in the back of his mind reminded him that he had heard this date before… not like other days were you managed to view but a day marked down with some degree of significance? His brows knitted, forming a puzzled expression on his face when it clicked. IT was that rain guardian's birthday. As if that mattered. Without further ado, he dropped the calendar onto the desk once more and calmly returned to finishing his duty as the prefect of Namichu.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

It had been a year since Sawada became the official boss of the Vongola. And some how he had ended up being his cloud guardian. Something he had not quite bargained for but it was all right, he ended up justifying, as long as joining this whole mafia business made his days slightly less boring and gave him some more interesting preys to bite.

But it didn't matter if he really did become the cloud guardian of the Vongola or not. His days were pretty much the same. Indeed he had graduated from his school with high marks and of course he went to a different one than before. But it didn't matter if he graduated or not… some days he would find himself walking around Namichu but much less than before, as was expected.

Shoes digging the softened earth as he walked toward the familiar building on his weekly visits. The ground dry and parched as his throat was. A gentle breeze… and sakura. He froze in his tracks. It didn't matter if it had been a few years or not, that revolting feeling in his gut whenever he saw, the flower he used to love viewing, the sakura. Probably because it brought back such a fresh wave of emotions, reminding him of that humiliation he suffered because of the mist user.

But that train of thought was halted by a familiar voice… "Yakyuu BAKA!" at the top of his lungs, the skylark presumed. At least it wasn't as bad as the swordsman from the Varia. Kyouya quickly attributed that voice to the bomber brat. So they were around. More herbivores crowding… what a way to ruin his day.

"H-hibari-san, I didn't expect to see you here" stuttering like always. Was there a day when the brunette would finally take on the role of what was given to him? Or did those depend on the rare moments when he had flames light up on his forehead? The large contrast between both states puzzled the cloud to no end.

"Hn" Was it April 24th already? Odd how quickly he made the connection now.

As if knowing that he would get no other reply, the brunette piped up. "It's Yamamoto's birthday today. Luckily sakura blossoms are still around this year so we decided to celebrate here. Care to join us?"

Hostile eyes glared down at the shorter teen, yet the other didn't flinch at all but continued smiling. Perhaps he wasn't like before after all. "No" before turning on his heel, preparing to leave.

"Hahaha. Hibari-san seems to still loathe sakura" a carefree chuckle slipped out from one of their mouths.

The former prefect's eyes flickered to the birthday boy's grin. It seemed to mock him for being weak, to be afraid and weak kneed due to a _flower_. "And _who_'s fault is that?" he asked through gritted teeth. Eyes momentarily flashed back to the sky he was going to bite down one day, causing the young boy who had not expected such freezing eyes to flinch. He absolutely hated it when he was made fun of. Perhaps the baseball player didn't intend to do so on purpose, but just because the other had improved, quite unexpectedly by leaps and bounds… from a baseball player to one that could defeat 'the strongest swordsman', did _not_ mean he had the right to make fun of the skylark. The tonfa wielder did not suffer humiliation lightly, nor could such a thing be forgotten and be made into a joke that easily. Fuming, yet not quite in the mood to ram his weapons into the grinning face due to the cursed pink petals that were dancing around them covering them in a thin layer of soft flower fragments, he left.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

The heaven's had opened, allowing light to seep through and bless the miserable town below. From last night, well to be precise it was actually early this morning, the city of Namimori had been drenched in a shower of rain, as expected of the month of April. It seemed to spew through the clouds, not to just fall.

Of course, as a citizen of Namimori, even the skylark couldn't escape the fate of being doused in rain water. Beads of water rolled off him, after saturating his clothes and hair until it would hold no more. Umbrellas… not needed. A little shower wouldn't harm him. Besides the chill that met him due to the excess of water it was pretty much all right.

Yet instead of hiding indoors like he usually did, or lounging in his school, he wandered the streets. Walking past buildings upon buildings until reached a little shop. It seemed old fashioned in many ways, roof still made of kawara or tiles that made the eaves of the roof, the doors made of shoji, wood worn with age and acid rain. But clearly, it gave off that feeling of a restaurant, although the stand with the menu wasn't out yet and it wasn't those types of restaurants with fake food displays… decent and simple. Grey eyes lifting a bit to read the words on the banner 武すし[1]

How in the world did he end up here? Wandering in front of the rain guardian's house and sushi shop. About to turn and leave he heard the sliding of the door. Head turning around out of curiosity, amber eyes stared back at him, wide-eyed in shock.

"Hibari-san?" a tone of disbelief as if he had viewed a ghost. A frown marred the skylark's face. What an idiotic question to ask. If it wasn't him then who was it? "Who else could it be" the words coming out in a deep growl. Or perhaps he should have denied it. After all looking like a drowned rat wasn't such a nice state to be in.

Seems as if the other had dropped the idea of going to wherever he was as he returned into the shop. The former prefect merely shrugged and was about to walk off when he felt a soft cloth thrown on his head. Momentarily surprised by the sudden whiteness obscuring his vision of the streets, he whipped it off, realizing it was a towel and glared at the teen. "What is the meaning of this?" demanding a reply yet receiving nothing but a shrug and an apologetic smile. Just as quick as he threw the cloth, the other had retreated back into his restaurant, but leaving the doors wide open. Was this an invitation?

As if his legs had a mind of its own it followed the other into the cozy confines of the sushi shop, immediately getting a scent of the vinegar that was mixed into the rice, the delicious scent of soy sauce that was ever present, the tangy taste of wasabi that hung in the air, and last but not least the fresh smell of fish that usually rested on the slabs of ice and wooden boards. His eyes flickered back to the dark corner of the shop, frowning slightly at how he had not noticed the other's presence, eyes monitoring his movements.

"What is the meaning of this?" he asked once more, puzzled by the actions. "Isn't it your birthday? Don't you have somewhere else to go?" questions just kept spouting out of his mouth. Since when had he memorized the date?

No response. Silence threaded through the atmosphere, making it uncomfortable. For the first time in his life he would rather have someone speak. First time not wanting to bask in the comfortableness of quiet times.

"They are coming over" a simple shrug and a simple smile. A simple-minded fool. No that wasn't quite fair. Especially evaluating how he worked on the field, the maneuvering, and the short time in making up techniques for shigure kintoki. Though he still had leaps and bounds to go through before he would ever disregard that sheep skin hanging on him.

"You could join as well" an offer that was bound to be shot down if not for the tempting plate of tuna held in his hand. A smile as bright as always, always seemed to be exactly the same. Did the other's cheek not feel sore from all the usage? From all those fake happy expressions slapped onto it? Probably not.

"No" declining just because the mere thought of herbivores crowding turned him off.

"Alright then" another rise of shoulders before taking a few steps and dropping a small white box with the restaurant's name printed onto it. Take out? Ha. What the hell was going on in the other's mind, Kyouya could not fathom. And thus he simply lifted the limp towel that the other had given to him in the rain and dropped it into the swordsman's arms before leaving without a word.

It wasn't until much later that evening when he was savoring the taste of the _toro_, fatty tuna, when he wondered if it had been a much better choice to stay. But his apathy towards gatherings and crowds were still the same after all these years so this little gift was probably much better than hearing the noise herbivores made.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Breath, coming out faster than usual, a heightened pace, a heaving chest, strength seemed to seep out of his body just like the blood from the wound on his right knee. Ripping off his tie, he wrapped it tightly around his wound, trying to apply pressure in order to halt the flow of blood momentarily. At times like these… It could be the difference between life and death.

Pushing himself away from the wall of the alley, his eyes carefully surveyed the scene. Boxes were strewn everywhere, providing temporary shelter. But still it wouldn't last long against the enemies.

What day was today? He thought as he realized it might be hard to get out of this alive. April 24. The swordsman's day of birth wasn't it? Ha. He couldn't die yet. He had a bunch of people he had yet to bite to death. What were the Rossi compared to those targets? For those defying the Vongola, it would be the cloud to show them 'discipline'.

With that thought, both hands covered the gun between them and he cocked the weapon, a confident smirk resting on his face. He was going home _today_.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Loud noises drifted in from the courtyard where the party was going on. Probably celebrating their rain guardian's birthday. Well it was the same for everyone's birthday actually. Excess of unnecessary voice and volume. There was no need to sing at the top of your lungs or prepare fireworks. Although the later he didn't mind that much since it added to the aesthetics of the night as he sipped his warm tea.

But it was extremely tempting… not the noise but the aroma of spitting meat being roasted over the fire, of the barbeque sauce that dripped off the skin, made his mouth water even though his face didn't show it. He swallowed thickly, allowing his head to turn towards the commotion in the courtyard. Beyond the flowers and bushes that marked his territory was the open space in the labyrinth of a garden. This base was quite new… mostly a headquarter for decoration, a headquarter in name. Their base was still settled in Japan. Mostly celebrations and Vongola parties were held in this mansion, perhaps that was why they made such ruckus to celebrate one of the odd years of peace. So odd sometimes they would suspect that this was the 'calm before the storm' yet disregarded that thought. Because peace was hard to come by and hard to let go… might as well enjoy it to the extreme, or so the sun guardian often encouraged.

About to close the doors shut to prevent the fragrance of food from wafting in, a smile stopped him. "What?" staring down at the raven haired man, Kyouya supposed it was the age to call him that, and the slightly shorter brunette beside him.

"We have enough to spare Hibari-san. Join us?" the brunette spoke, somehow those stutters and nervous tones seemed to have been beaten out of his system. Either by the hostile environment of the underworld or by the cruel training of that baby. The silver haired man in the background muttered something about wasting time on asking the skylark.

Indeed they were. Thus with a "no" he shut the doors, completely not caring about etiquette or the looks on their faces, disregarding his weak stomach that complained about the lack of food. And then the back of his brain piped up about whether or not he would regret this in the future. _Shut up._ He snarled and spent the rest of the night in solitude, listening to the merry noises and the sounds of fireworks.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

And yes the previous year had been the calm before the storm. The Millefiore that had disguised it's self, lurking in the underworld, had finally revealed itself, quickly defeating and controlling other families. This called for a war in the Mafia world and Vongola had answered to it in order to protect things they held dear. The skylark didn't care. It brought an assortment of interesting battles after all. But it didn't occur to him much later when the consequences of engaging in such a fight revealed itself.

One of Vongola's most respected men had fallen. Causing nearly everyone to be washed into a period of grieving. Even Kyouya himself could feel the loss of such a man. He was indeed one of those strong pillars. Even at his age he contributed a lot to the war and that was probably why he was targeted. Because of his strength, his brains, and the close ties to the main family in order to hand the Vongola a blow. Yes, the man was Yamamoto Tsuyoshi and even the heaven's were weeping for such a gain to their territory.

It had been a week since they announced his death in the battlefield, in the middle of a mission, murdered in a fairly honorable way. After a week of grief his only son had finally allowed the funeral to be held.

Friends, family, nearly the entire Vongola wanted to attend yet his son insisted on simplicity of the funeral. A single file of men clad in black, the tallest in the front holding an urn that contained ashes of the sushi chef as they walked toward the designated grave marked by a simple epitaph. A sorrow procession as they lowered the urn into the grave. A simple speech. A farewell. One shovel. One handful of dirt. Good bye.

The lone cloud watched from the sidelines on an elevated hill overlooking the entire thing. Slowly the other guardians left the area, allowing his son to talk to his deceased father. That was when he took a few steps, allowing his leather shoes to be drenched in rain, be coated in mud as the water splashed from the puddles sending bits of the earth onto his shoes.

Walking behind the crying guardian… no. It was the rain not tears. Or were they the same? After closing his eyes, shying them from the constant downpour, he nodded his head slightly, paying his respects to the man.

After slowly opening his eyes he observed the man kneeling in front of the stone epitaph. "That expression doesn't suit you" then what did? Yet still something felt unnerving without the constant upturned lips and the happy glint in his eyes.

When the other's eyes unsealed and turned towards the skylark, the cloud froze for a moment, first time viewing such hostile and empty eyes. The murderous aura from the battles were nothing compared to this. Fear seized his heart before the tonfa wielder banished the thought away.

"Then what does?" a question, a sardonic remark, a smirk that didn't suit his personality at all.

"Snap out of it" Kyouya commanded. Mourning for the dead wasn't going to bring them back. Blaming yourself wouldn't reverse time anyways. Why not just accept this as part of life? It was a huge joke to mankind after all. Not that he understood… since he didn't have such a strong bond between him and his parents. Who knew what they were up to?

"Who are you to tell me? Who are you to command me?" Eyes burning with hatred, remark so harsh that even the cloud flinched internally.

Taken aback he snapped "Snap. Out. Of it." Tonfas pulled out of it's hiding place, whipping it towards the other and hitting him square on the jaw. He had expected the swordsman to deflect him. But instead the other just took the blow and was knocked to the side. "A week is enough to mourn" he growled "I'm sick and tired of this herbivorous act of yours." Tonfas glinting with drops of rain water and blood as well. Seemingly to had split the other's chin, blood was leaking out and being washed away by tears of the sky, tears of the cloud.

"Like you care" the other snarled with the sharp taste of resentment in his tone "I'm tired of that attitude of yours"

That was surprising. Well it wasn't like he wanted to associate himself with anyone… a blink. A large droplet of water falling from his saturated eyelashes and slid down his pale cheek, giving off the hallucination of the skylark shedding a tear. On another note… why did he care? The other had nothing to do with him. Or perhaps he had expected more? Expected some kind of similarity between him and the swordsman? Well it seemed that the rain guardian seemed the most similar… the one that was not entirely a herbivore and indeed had some wolf like features as shown by the amber eyes currently glaring at him.

"I don't care" stating it as a matter of fact though he wasn't quite clear yet. "Your father would be tired as well"

And that probably eroded whatever patience the rain guardian held within him as he drew his sword and pointed the blade at the cloud. The skylark simply smirked as if he had been expecting it, picking up the invitation and charging at the swordsman. And under the rain they danced: tearing at each other's throat, filling the afternoon with the clang of metal upon metal, dousing the atmosphere with killing intent until one side collapsed.

Neither of them walked away as a victor. Neither of them escaped the array of scars given to them by the opponent. And there they lay panting until the Decimo felt something was wrong and decided to go retrieve his soggy guardians.

Today was April 24th. A day of happiness was now filled with sorrow.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Most people enjoyed the times when they finished missions early and could enjoy the local area. Not for the skylark however. What was he going to do with 10 hours before the flight back to Japan? Besides no where was as good or comfortable as Namimori City. With a sigh he found himself in the bustling streets of New York city, dressed like those of Wall Street… after all there was where he completed his mission and where he just came out of… without a single drop of blood. His assassination skills had improved, of course. Unless that day he really wanted to see some blood being shed, but today wasn't one of those days.

Taking a deep breath and scowling immediately when his lungs were filled with car exhaust and pollution. Odd. It was April 24th yet the Rain was not in sight at all. The skylark raised his head and lifted it to examine the clouds above to see if there were indications of rain. None in sight. A sigh escaped his lips as he walked through the streets where both sides were crowding in on him, masses of people moving through as well as the honking of cars giving off the sense of endless traffic. Such an annoying place with crowding herbivores.

And so he sought the peace and quiet of indoors where as he was deciding where to go he remembered that New York held the headquarters in which the first baseball was made. Getting onto a taxi and moving to the small village in central New York, he took in the sights of the place. Indeed it was baseball oriented huh. Entering the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum that was blissfully free of noise except for a few lone souls that he could ignore as a whole.

Walking through the aisles and taking a quick glance at the documents, photos, and videos and feeling utterly bored by the sight, once again wondering why anyone was interested in sports that basically consisted of whacking the ball and running around a circle. But either way it was one way to spend the afternoon and thus that was what he did for an hour or two. However a baseball had caught his eye. Walking to the gift shop and eyes skimming over the signatures titled on the leather skin of the ball he halted on one of them and picked it up, hefting it in his palm. After weighing it as if he knew baseball all this time he purchased the ball that was held in his palm and headed to the airport.

It didn't take long to return to Japan. By the time he had arrived it was around 11 at night. Returning to the his silent foundation room he headed to the opposite end that indicated the transition from his foundation to the headquarters. Noises of drunken males filled the halls, probably another celebration going on.

Not that it mattered to him and thus he stopped at one of the rooms and entered. Something in the other guardian's minds seem to justify that doors did not need to be locked. With a sigh he slipped into the room, eyes casually skimming over the baseball figurines and the bat in the corner of the room along with a wrapped sword. He dropped off the baseball at the table that was crowded with papers and other trinkets. Probably should have left a note or something but he didn't know what to say nor what kind of note to leave behind since he had never given any sort of note or card. Thus he left the ball there and left. It wouldn't be enough to apologize for last year… but it was the first time Kyouya had bought anything for anyone.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

It was one of those years where the losses seemed so great and the future too bleak; herbivores started questioning their reasons for continuing this warfare. They had lost the baby and that was a huge blow to Sawada. A week or two of puffy red eyes, smiles that became scarcer and more forced throughout the months. It was to be expected. His tutor had accompanied him throughout the years, guided him through the toughest of times, almost like a second father. And yet now he was gone. Even the skylark was shocked when he heard the strongest hitman had simply dropped dead.

But that just added to the list of reasons why Byakuran should be defeated. Even though it seemed almost impossible to do so. Perhaps that was why even though they would always try to celebrate everyone's birthday with fervor, today seemed much more subdued, judging from the voices that weren't as loud compared to the past years and the occasional silences that occurred. Which oddly disturbed him as he sat in his room and stared at the moon of mist, ears unable to escape any noises made in the common room further down the hall.

He closed his eyes, savoring the flavor of tea in his mouth as his ears picked up the clinking of utensils... eating cake, he supposed. That was when he heard the doors being slid open. His eyes snapped open to identify the intruder. The other moved soundlessly into the room, shutting the door behind him before sitting down beside. How brazen. Without even an invitation of sorts. But it was the man in his early twenties, the one who had fulfilled the baby's expectations of him (not completely though), the one with a scar marring his face caused by a tonfa that had snipped the chin a few years back… yes, it was the rain of the Vongola. But Kyouya supposed he could be excused, after all the other wasn't empty handed. He had a, what the skylark could suspect as the so called 'birthday cake', wedge of cake in his hand. A brow arched upwards, questioning the other's actions.

"Kyoko-chan told me to deliver one here. She said you enjoyed sweets with your tea occasionally," casual as he slid the cake in the cloud's direction. The skylark took the piece of cake nonchalantly, taking a bite and musing over how the girl seemed to be much more observant than that brother of hers.

"Besides, I haven't thanked you for that baseball yet," chuckling as he expressed his gratitude in words.

"Hn"

And they lapsed into silence. Some point during the night, after he had finished the sweet he offered the other some tea. One, two, until the tea in the pot cooled and disappeared all together did the other leave. Spending hours staring at the moon together… or was it separately? The skylark couldn't tell. Regardless of what the swordsman thought, the skylark was quite pleased with such an exchange. There weren't many people who would actually bask in silences. Most, probably because they were herbivores, loved to break silences. But silences weren't ice. They were blankets.

Easy come, easy go. The skylark thought as he watched the fading shadow of the Rain guardian.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Battling became more and more frequent probably explaining the lack of members in the base right now. The reason probably traced back to the lack of the baby. Without him, for a period of time the Decimo seemed to revert to his 'dame' self. Seemingly to fill in the gap caused by such a loss he started to rely more and more on Cavallone, the former tutor's first student. Of course allies of the Vongola would feel such a change and start moving, perhaps due to jealousy or fear it wasn't that clear, but either way it created factions within the family.

Those squabbles had to be put down or exterminated as a whole. And that was what most people were up to lately, to prevent increase in forces for the Millefiore. But even as they did so, there didn't seem to be a way to end this war anytime soon. And this was why that solution was created… an all or nothing bet. The outcome of the world depended on young shoulders.

However, since there was a high possibility of an unfortunate outcome, the skylark did not wish to experience regret. He had never experienced such a thing for the twenty or so years of his life and had no inclination of experiencing it. That kind of sorrow and disappointment did not befit a carnivore at all. Thus with a thumb lingering over the silky fabric as he lowered it into the box, he headed over to the only other person in the mansion at this current time.

Usually, this day was filled with some kind of noise. But the absence of others really did seem like a significant change. Although, to be honest, he had prepared this before hand, shocking even himself. Nevertheless he continued, just because he was the aloof cloud that would abide to no one's rules spare his own.

One short knock on the frame of the door before opening it and sliding in, disregarding the other's somewhat shocked expression. After all, one knock was clearly not enough to be prepared. Not that those silly notions ever stopped the skylark at all. Walking over he dropped the box into the swordsman's arms.

"What's this?" eyes staring at him in amazement as he merely shrugged and motioned for him to open it up.

And so the other did, lifting the baby blue tie that had a nice sheen due to the lighting effects. A chuckle slipped out of the other's throat, "But Hibari, I don't know how to tie a tie."

"Doesn't hurt to learn _now _does it?" he countered before sighing and snatching the tie from the calloused fingers of the other as he threw the tie around the other's shoulder so that it hung from his neck. "Watch carefully" he commanded before resuming to knot a Windsor on the other, disregarding the casual clothes the other was currently wearing. Placing the wide end on the right side, he crossed it over the other before pulling it through the center. Good thing the other was bright enough to move slightly to allow the skylark to demonstrate. Then tugging the wide end to the right side once more, this time it went underneath the narrow end before going through the center and once again shifted to the right side. Next he moved the wide end so that it crossed the front and went to the left before bringing it under the narrow part and up the center. Subsequently the wide end was brought down passing the loop in the front. For the finishing touch, he held down on the narrow end before moving the knot up. Tying the ends, closure. His lips twisted upwards from such a thought.

Purposefully he moved the knot too fast so that it slightly choked the other, causing the other to gasp for breath. Kyouya smirked, both hands still on the silky tie before leaning even closer, lips just a few millimeters away from brushing the other's ear, to whisper "誕生日おめえとう"[2]

* * *

Happy Birthday Yamamoto Takeshi

—黒より

Notes: Time seems off here. Sorry about that.

TN:  
[1]: 武すし - takesushi = restaurant name  
[2]: 誕生日おめえとう - tanjyoubi omedetou = happy birthday (informal)

**Comments are always appreciated. **


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